Comparison

Astrospheric vs ARTstronomy Planner

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Astrospheric

This app offers advanced weather forecasting and astronomical data for stargazers and astrophotographers. It provides detailed hourly forecasts, cloud and sky transparency reports, and alerts for celestial events. It also includes tools for astronomical societies and offline site setup.

Highlights
  • 84-hour hourly weather forecast
  • Ensemble cloud forecast
  • Kp index for Aurora
  • ISS flyover paths
  • Integrated smoke forecast
  • Sky and ground data
  • Rise and set times
  • Solar and Lunar eclipse data
Features
Read full description

Astrospheric provides advanced weather tools for professional astronomers and astrophotographers, and supports hundreds of astronomical societies with tools that help members stay connected. Are you using what the pros use? Features • 84 hour, hour-by-hour forecast • Free notification reminders for major astronomical events • Ensemble cloud forecast lets you quickly compare the major forecast models with hourly updates (Astrospheric Pro) • Extended cloud forecast • Kp index for Aurora viewing (and alerts with Pro) • International Space Station (ISS) flyover paths and times • Astrospheric is the only astronomy service that integrates the smoke forecast into the transparency report • Sky data: cloud, sky transparency, seeing • Ground data: wind, temperature, and humidity • Precise rise and set times for both the sun and moon • Get weather alerts when conditions meeting your requirements are met (Astrospheric Pro) • Details Solar and Lunar eclipse data Astronomical Societies • Stay connected with chat, image sharing, and event planning with all of your members. • Qualifying astronomical societies can get Pro features for all of their members Site Mode • Information necessary to quickly set up your GOTO tracking mount • Available even if you don’t have a network connection Astrospheric Professional is now available to enable Weather Alerts, Ensemble cloud forecast, and more! • Astrospheric Professional is billed monthly or yearly and will auto-renew unless turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current subscription period. The renewal cost will be the same as the initial sign-up cost of the subscription. Any changes in cost will be communicated before renewal takes place. • Payment will be charged to iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase • Subscriptions may be managed by you and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the your Account Settings after purchase. A link to these settings is made available within Astrospheric "My Profile" for easy access. • The terms of use and privacy policy may be found at https://www.astrospheric.com/privacypolicy.php, purchasing a subscription shows agreement to these terms. PLEASE NOTE: Weather data is not available for Hawaii due to the domain area covered by the Canadian Meteorological Center. However, satellite and light pollution map layers, as well as other features will work in Hawaii. More information on Astrospherics forecast domain can be found here: https://www.astrospheric.com/dynamiccontent/datadomain.html

About

ARTstronomy Planner

This app provides a clear GO/MAYBE/NO GO verdict for stargazing and astrophotography based on detailed weather and sky conditions. It offers smart forecasts tuned to your specific shooting needs, including cloud cover, moon brightness, and seeing.

Highlights
  • Smart GO/MAYBE/NO GO verdicts
  • Session-tuned forecasts
  • Hourly Sky Timeline
  • Live moon phase tracking
  • ISS pass tracking
  • Narrowband-aware scoring
  • Drive-out comparison
Features
Read full description

One honest GO/MAYBE/NO GO verdict for tonight's sky — tuned to what you're shooting. ARTstronomy Planner tells you — honestly — whether tonight is worth setting up the telescope or driving out to your dark site. No more juggling five weather apps, squinting at cloud maps, and guessing when the moon's too bright to bother. Pick what you're shooting — deep-sky, Moon & planets, or a mixed night out — and get one clear verdict: GO, MAYBE, or NO GO. WHAT YOU GET • Smart verdicts, tuned to your session — cloud cover, moon brightness, seeing, sky darkness, and dark-window length are weighed differently for long-exposure imaging than for a casual night at the eyepiece. • Sky Timeline — an hourly, color-coded forecast strip you slide through like a dial. Total cloud, seeing, precipitation, and humidity for the next two weeks, with sunset, sunrise, and astronomical twilight marked right on the grid. • Live moon phase — a real moon-phase icon and illumination percentage that updates as you drag through time, so you can see exactly how the moon will look at 11pm versus 3am. • ISS pass tracking — visible International Space Station passes appear right on your timeline. Tap one for rise, peak, and set times, direction, altitude, and estimated brightness. • Narrowband-aware scoring — tell it you shoot narrowband, and the app stops marking down nights for a bright moon your filters can cut right through. • Drive-out comparison — see at a glance whether your dark site is actually worth the drive tonight, or if home is just as good. • Bortle sky-quality estimates for any site, home or away, pulled from real light-pollution data. • Ranked target suggestions — the best deep-sky objects or Moon/planet targets for tonight, scored for your gear and your sky. ARTSTRONOMY PLANNER PRO Free, forever: • Tonight's GO / MAYBE / NO GO verdict for your location, for deep-sky, Moon & planets, or mixed sessions • Score and "why" breakdown, live moon phase, and Bortle estimate for your location • Sky Timeline for the next 24 hours Pro unlocks: • The full 14-day hourly Sky Timeline • Drive-out comparison with your saved dark sites • Ranked target suggestions for any night • ISS pass tracking • Narrowband-aware scoring Try Pro free for 7 days. After the free trial, Pro is $1.99/week or $4.99/month (US prices; prices vary by country and are shown in the app before you buy). Payment is charged to your Apple Account. Subscriptions renew automatically unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period, and you can manage or cancel them anytime in your App Store account settings. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://rentry.co/artstronomy-planner-privacy Built by an astrophotographer tired of guessing.

Screenshots

Astrospheric4 screens
ARTstronomy Planner3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: ARTstronomy Planner at none against Astrospheric's 2. ARTstronomy Planner also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.8). Astrospheric's advantage is ratings volume (453 vs 2) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months). On price, ads and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Astrospheric sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. ARTstronomy Planner asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

ARTstronomy Planner holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Astrospheric has 453 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Astrospheric ships an update every 3 weeks, ARTstronomy Planner every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and October 12, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
Astrospheric versus ARTstronomy Planner: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterAstrosphericARTstronomy Planner
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (453 ratings)5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews87.7% of reviews—
Number of ratings453 — better2
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeks — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFreemiumFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#52 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS9.1 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size47 MB8 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperDaniel FiordalisNOAH HAMILTON RASHKIND

Customer experience

Astrospheric

All ratings453 ratings
Positive94.5%
Neutral1.5%
Negative4.0%
Written reviews146 reviews
Positive87.7%
Neutral4.8%
Negative7.5%

ARTstronomy Planner

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Astrospheric

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • App crashing or not loading on some devices
  • Inconsistent temperature and wind data

Requested features

4 requests
  • Notification system for clear skies
  • Widgets for quick access to data
  • More detailed transparency and seeing data
  • Ability to flip east and west in the app

ARTstronomy Planner

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Astrospheric

Subscriptions2
  • Astrospheric Pro Subscription7 Days trial$2.991 Month
  • Astrospheric Pro Subscription7 Days trial$29.991 Year
None

ARTstronomy Planner

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Astrospheric free?
Astrospheric is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is ARTstronomy Planner free?
ARTstronomy Planner is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Astrospheric or ARTstronomy Planner?
ARTstronomy Planner is rated higher. Astrospheric averages 4.8 out of 5 from 453 ratings, while ARTstronomy Planner averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.
Do Astrospheric or ARTstronomy Planner have ads?
Neither Astrospheric nor ARTstronomy Planner shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Astrospheric or ARTstronomy Planner?
Astrospheric ships an update every 3 weeks, and ARTstronomy Planner every 2 months. Most recently, Astrospheric was updated on October 14, 2026 and ARTstronomy Planner on October 12, 2026.

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